Being recently arrived in Georgetown, Kentucky, I have only just begun to gain an understanding of the practices, policies, and players in the local and state political arenas. As some may have realized, and others may not, I consider myself an independent and have viewpoints, taken altogether, that do not match either major party. However, this election season finds me leaning more and more towards support of the policies and candidates from the Democratic Party.
Recently, I have had an opportunity to review the positions and policies, as well as a couple of speeches, of the incumbent Republican state senator, Damon Thayer, and am completely unimpressed. Further exasperating my ill feelings towards his candidacy is the result of an opportunity to meet with the man during Georgetown’s Latin Festival held two weekends ago.
Damon Thayer voted for a Kentucky public education funding cut of about 10%, while shifting more state funds toward his friends in the horse racing industry. Thayer has also supported legislative assaults on women’s rights and issues. Senator Thayer has been listed as the number two conservative legislator in the state, having been listed number one last year, and missing a return by only one point, by an ostensibly non-partisan agency. This agency ranks state legislators in accordance with their voting records’ reflection of the interests of “growth”. Upon closer examination, that growth is not related to the consumer economy, but rather business-to-business and business-to-government. In other words, Damon Thayer has consistently voted in the interest of big business receiving tax payer dollars while government and programs get cut.
Damon Thayer’s Fourth of July speech, given in Georgetown, was loaded with hyperbole, the Senator essentially claiming that America had no problems and that everything would get even better because we are free. He denied that more Americans than ever are without healthcare coverage and he denied that the American economy is in the worst shape since the Great Depression. And while claiming that all American problems could be fixed simply by freedom, Damon Thayer had the temerity to suggest that anyone in disagreement was uninformed and disloyal. He referenced and quoted John Adams, second President of the United States, in his speech before Georgetown, sorely abusing the words and dignity of that great man. The speech given by Thayer represents all that is wrong with the Republican worldview wherein only those who agree are true Americans and those who dispute are “run[ning] our great Nation into the ground..,”; and therein lies the truth behind his agenda. By capitalizing “nation” in his speech, Senator Thayer reveals that he is not a patriot and that he does not truly believe in freedom. He reveals that he is a nationalist, a person who believes that the people serve in the interest of the government and that he is a fascist, that disagreement with his agenda is anti-American.
If nothing else, I would vote against this man simply to remove his tainted and poisoned voice from the state senate.
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